What are referred to in the Mahayana Buddhist literature as the 'eight mundane concerns' or the 'eight worldly dharmas' are, in fact, simply primordial levels of attachment that exist virtually as assumptions in our minds. We constantly crave happy feelings, getting nice things, hearing pleasant words with our name in them, and having people approve of us, and desperately try to avoid the opposite. In fact, the more we look into our minds – be our own therapists, as Lama Yeshe wisely puts it – the more we see that these attitudes inform most of our decisions in daily life, thus causing us so much confusion and pain. Reversing these attitudes – so radical! – is the essence of spiritual practice.
